Emirates Makes Economy Award Tickets on Condor 25% Less Expensive

We’ve become all too accustomed to the near-constant drumbeat of airline program devaluations, where an airline charges more points or miles to book a given ticket.

Less common, but certainly more enjoyable, is when an airline does the reverse, and makes booking award tickets less expensive. Emirates Skywards has done precisely that, lowering the cost of booking economy award tickets on Condor-operated flights by a significant 25%.

Here’s what you need to know.

Condor Economy Award Tickets Are Now 25% Cheaper When Redeeming Emirates Skywards

As first reported by AwardWallet, Emirates has decreased the price of economy award tickets on Condor-operated flights by 25%.

Unfortunately, the rate cut doesn’t extend to business class flights, and Condor doesn’t have a particularly robust network from the U.S. Nevertheless, it’s fantastic to see Emirates now charging less for economy awards.

Emirates has a distance-based award chart for Condor flights, which means the rate you pay for your ticket depends on the distance the flight covers. This is generally a good thing for travelers, as rates don’t fluctuate according to various factors, unlike under a dynamic pricing model.

For example, Condor’s flight between New York (JFK) and Frankfurt (FRA) covers 3,856 miles one-way, which falls within the Zone 6 distance band. Thus, you’ll pay 19,500 miles for the one-way economy flight.

Meanwhile, Condor’s flight from Los Angeles (LAX) to Frankfurt covers 5,806 miles one-way, placing it in the Zone 8 distance band, where economy flights cost 28,500 miles one-way.

Even better, Emirates Skywards charges modest taxes and fees, so you don’t have to worry about shelling out hundreds of dollars on top of your miles.

While earning Emirates Skywards is becoming slightly more challenging, there are still numerous ways to do so. Despite American Express Membership Rewards and Citi ThankYou Rewards recently decreasing their transfer ratios, there are a few 1:1 transfer partners left, including Bilt Rewards and Capital One Miles.

Final Thoughts

It’s not every day we see airlines charging less for award tickets, but Emirates Skywards has done precisely that with economy award tickets on Condor flights. While not everyone will be able to reap the rewards of this positive change due to Condor’s relatively limited network, those who live in a city served by the airline should definitely consider redeeming miles for a flight to Europe, as long as economy class is acceptable.